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Pomona College is ranked No. 1 in the nation for “Great Financial Aid,” according to a survey released today by The Princeton Review.

With 130,000 college students rating their schools on dozens of topics, the same survey also ranked Pomona College No. 4 in the categories “Their Students Love These Colleges” and “Best Run Colleges.” Pomona was No. 5 for “Best Science Lab Facilities.”

The Princeton Review’s guidebook The Best 379 Colleges: 2015 Edition (Random House / Princeton Review, August 2014) reports the top 20 ranking colleges in 62 categories. Pomona College was named in seven of the rankings:

#1 Great Financial Aid

#3 Least Religious Students

#4 Best Run Colleges

#4 Their Students Love These Colleges

#5 Best Science Lab Facilities

#13 Best Dorms

#17 Happiest Students

During 2013-14, 56% of Pomona College students received financial aid, and the average financial award was $41,213. Pomona College meets the full financial aid need of its students with scholarships and a small amount of work-study funds. Loans are not included in financial aid packages. The Princeton Review calls Pomona "the college at which students reported the highest satisfaction with their financial aid awards."

In the 2015 guide, Pomona College students say that “there is an emphasis on collaborative learning,” and “many professors are great discussion leaders and really motivate students to get involved in class.” Students have the advantage of “getting to know professors outside the classroom, in any setting, from office hours, to Thanksgiving dinner at their homes.”

According to The Princeton Review, “the rankings are based on surveys of 130,000 students (average 343 per campus) ... The survey asks students 80 questions about their school's academics, administration, student body and themselves. The ranking methodology uses a five-point Likert scale to convert qualitative student assessments into quantitative data for school-to-school comparisons.”

Robert Franek, the book's author and The Princeton Review senior vice president / publisher,notes that“Every college in our book offers outstanding academics. These colleges differ significantly in their program offerings, campus culture, locales, and cost. Our purpose is not to crown one college 'best' overall or to rank these distinctive schools 1 to 379 on any single topic. We present our 62 ranking lists to give applicants the broader base of campus feedback to choose the college that's best for them.”

Pomona College, founded in 1887, offers a comprehensive program in the arts, humanities, social sciences and natural sciences. The College is located in Southern California and is the founding member of the prestigious Claremont Colleges.